By GREG GIAUQUE
Classes are winding down. Finals are drawing nigh. And BYU’s wide array of clubs are taking vastly different approaches to the upcoming holiday season.
The BYU Highland Arts Association, formerly the Bagpipe and Drum Club, plans on celebrating the holidays in Celtic fashion. Club president, Michael Nielson said the club will host a holiday booth Dec. 4 in the Wilkinson Center that explains Celtic Christmas traditions.
Nielson said the group began as a music and percussion group, but has expanded since its first year.
“I helped my roommate start it last year… and (since then) we’ve changed it into celebrating anything Celtic. We work with many different organizations now.”
The group’s bagpipers will have a special festive involvement by performing Dec. 4 and 5 with BYU’s International Folk Dance team at the Christmas Around the World Celebration.
Not all groups are prepping for the holidays in the same way however. A majority of those club officials contacted said the holiday rush for home has
put a damper on specific holiday activities.
Bill Guerin, president of the BYU Collectable Cards Club said the group will have its regular weekly meetings, but has not planned anything specific for the holiday season.
A Fencing Club officer said the club will hold practice as usual the week after Thanksgiving, but do not have anything specifically planned for the holidays due to students’ busy schedules.
Many other groups are still in the tentative planning stages.
Corrine Her, vice-president of General Affairs for the Asian American Association, said the club is still working on some fun and easy holiday activities.
“We were thinking that people would be busy with finals… so we wanted to do something light, not anything that would take too much time,” Her said.
Right now, the AAA has a rough plan for a multi-cultural talk show to be held in early December. Her also said a very informal sledding or iceblocking activity on or aroud Dec. 10 would be held to give its members a chance to unwind before hitting it hard for finals.
Dave Bagley, president of the Golf and Root Beer Club, said he and other club officials are tentatively planning a benefit concert featuring some local bands. He said if the activity can go through, the proceeds will go towards Toys for Tots or to local food banks.
To find out more on what the different clubs are doing for the holidays and how to get involved, students can find a list of clubs and contacts at the Student Leadership Offices on the third floor of the Wilkinson Center. A list of clubs and web pages is also located on the internet at http://byusa.stlife.byu.edu/clubs.htm.
